Oakland Raiders: Realistic options at No. 24 during the 2019 NFL Draft

Julian Love, CB, Notre Dame

Put simply, the Oakland secondary was horrendous in 2018. If not for the emergence of Gareon Conley as a legitimate No. 1 cornerback and sudden progress of Karl Joseph, we may have seen the Raiders field one of the worst pass defenses in recent history.

That’s why cornerback is among the teams’ top needs heading into the offseason. They’ve got Conley to build around, but need more than just one quality cornerback to compete in today’s pass-happy NFL. Finding another legitimate playmaker (or two) in the coming months will be imperative to the Raiders being competitive in 2019.

Unfortunately, there’s a decent chance all of the top cornerback prospects are off the board at No. 24. So unless the Raiders select Greedy Williams or Deandre Baker with the fourth-overall pick, they may be forced to reach if they’re truly invested in upgrading the cornerback position.

However, one guy worth mentioning is Julian Love. Although not seen as an elite prospect, the Notre Dame alum brings more than enough talent to the table to at least warrant consideration at this point in the draft.

What makes Love special is his ability to get his hands on the football. Over his three seasons with the Fighting Irish, he broke up 39 passes and intercepted another five. He has terrific instincts in coverage, and isn’t afraid to mix it up in as a run defender either.

It’s no grand slam, but taking Love at No. 24 would get the Raiders secondary moving in the right direction.